OmniStar Financial Group Inc. Has $1.82 Million Stake in Altria Group, Inc. $MO

OmniStar Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO) by 6.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,112 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,909 shares during the quarter. Altria Group comprises 1.4% of OmniStar Financial Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. OmniStar Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $1,824,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MO. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in Altria Group during the second quarter valued at about $126,471,000. Central Valley Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Altria Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,715,000. Invst LLC increased its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 252.0% during the 1st quarter. Invst LLC now owns 16,188 shares of the company’s stock valued at $972,000 after acquiring an additional 11,589 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new position in shares of Altria Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $5,388,000. Finally, Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Altria Group by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 79,019 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,633,000 after purchasing an additional 4,149 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock.

Altria Group Price Performance

NYSE MO opened at $58.15 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $97.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.51. The company’s fifty day moving average is $63.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.82. Altria Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $50.08 and a 52-week high of $68.60.

Altria Group (NYSE:MO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 37.24% and a negative return on equity of 295.26%. The business had revenue of $5.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.38 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Altria Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.370-5.45 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Altria Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th were given a $1.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.3%. This is an increase from Altria Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio is 80.92%.

Altria Group announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, October 30th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on MO. Bank of America increased their price target on Altria Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Altria Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Altria Group from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Altria Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.33.

About Altria Group

Altria Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells smokeable and oral tobacco products in the United States. The company offers cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; large cigars and pipe tobacco under the Black & Mild brand; moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands; oral nicotine pouches under the on! brand; and e-vapor products under the NJOY ACE brand.